Forest-Related Targets and Indicators
DRAFT
FOREST-RELATED TARGETS AND INDICATORS
FOR INTEGRATION IN
THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
A Draft Proposal from the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF)
Based on the work of
Markku Simula
Consultant
12 February 2014
1
DRAFT
FOREST RELATED TARGETS AND INDICATORS FOR INTEGRATION
IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Summary
Forests and trees outside forests are vital for sustainable development. Forests occupy one-third of the Earth’s land area, and about another half of the total remaining land area features sparsely scattered trees. These renewable natural resources are crucial for tackling many of the issues identified in The Future We Want, such as poverty, food security, climate change, biodiversity, sustainable production and consumption, and social inclusion, particularly meeting the basic needs of vulnerable people and ensuring their well-being.
The benefits of forests and trees outside forests are generated at the management unit, landscape, subnational, national and global scales. Socio-economic and environmental services provided by all types of forests go well beyond forest boundaries, benefit all humankind and maintain conditions for life on Earth. Increasing forest benefits for sustainable development is a clear, concrete, aspirational and easy-to-communicate concept.
Integrated approaches are needed for enhancing the multiple contributions of forests to SDGs as they will harness synergies and balance cross-sectoral tradeoffs between forests and other closely interlinked issues.
Several international instruments and processes offer a range of goals, objectives and targets on forests based on which forest-related targets and indicators can be developed. These include, among others, the Millennium Development Goals, , the Non-Legally Binding Instrument on All Types of Forests (Forest Instrument) and its four shared Global Objectives on Forests, agreed by the United Nations Forum on Forests and subsequently adopted by the General Assembly; International Tropical Timber Agreement , the Convention on Biological Diversity and its Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011–2020, including Aichi targets; the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol and decisions on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD+); the UN Convention to Combat Desertification and the Rio+20 embraced concept on land degradation neutrality, the UN Zero Hunger Challenge; and the Global Partnership on Forest Landscape Restoration.
Based on this background, the members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests[1] propose the following ten targets for forests and trees outside forests for integration in the sustainable development goals (SDGs). These targets build on and are designed to support and contribute to the achievement of the goals, objectives and targets in the existing global intergovernmental instruments and policy fora relevant to forests. The proposed targets are applicable to different constellations of SDGs, and can be transferred and tailored by countries to their national and local circumstances, capacities and level of ambition.
Target 1: All the world’s forests managed sustainably. Sustainable forest management (SFM) aims to maintain and enhance the economic, social and environmental values of forests, for the benefit of present and future generations. This target focuses on the long-term sustainability of forest resources and landscapes. It is a positive, aspirational, action-oriented, forward-looking and easy-to-communicate concept that addresses, in a balanced way, all the pillars of sustainable development. SFM is a tool for balancing diverse objectives and managing their tradeoffs through participatory decision-making processes. It is applicable to all countries, including countries that have lost their forests and wish to re-establish them. This target can be easily translated to national conditions as SFM covers all forest activities and functions and is applicable at all geographic scales. The Member States of the United Nations have already made a political commitment to achieving SFM in the Forest Instrument.
Target 2: The world’s forests and tree resources improved.The value of forests and trees outside forests as natural assets is determined by both their quantity (area and volume) and quality (e.g. their composition and health). The extent and quality of forests and trees outside forests are easy concepts to communicate. This target underpins biodiversity, climate, and all the other multiple benefits of forests.
Target 3: Climate change mitigation benefits from forests increased. Deforestation and forest degradation are a major cause of global carbon dioxide emissions, but sustainably managed forests are important carbon sinks. Protecting forests, improving forest management and establishing new forests all increase the climate-mitigation benefits of forests. Carbon stocks in harvested wood products in use can also be increased.
Target 4: Direct and indirect contributions of forests and trees to food security and nutrition increased. Forests and trees are major sources of nutritious foods, such as fruits, nuts, leaves, oils, honey, wild meat and insects, and 2.4 billion people rely on fuelwood for cooking. Forests boost agricultural productivity and benefit agriculture by, for example, regulating the climate, providing fresh water, and harbouring pollinators.
Target 5: Poverty reduced through increased income and employment from forests. Hundreds of millions of people worldwide obtain income and employment from forests, especially in developing countries. Empowering women in the forest sector creates significant employment and business opportunities for them and has important spillover benefits for households and communities in terms of food security, health and education.
Target 6: Forest-related biodiversity conserved and improved. Forests hold up to 80 percent of all terrestrial biodiversity. Biodiversity underpins forest productivity, resilience and adaptive capacity and is essential for maintaining ecological processes such as carbon sequestration, pollination, seed dispersal and decomposition. Biodiversity is fundamental for food security.
Target 7: Fresh water supply from forest areas improved. Forests are natural filtration and storage systems that supply an estimated 75 percent of usable water globally.Forests promote the infiltration of rainwater into soil and then into groundwater, providing water supplies in dry periods and helping reduce flood peaks.
Target 8: Resilience of people and forests against slow-onset and extreme events increased. Forests and trees increase the resilience of food-production systems and therefore the resilience of households to shocks and slow-onset changes. SFM increases resilience through approaches that value and apply local knowledge and in which management is adapted over time based on monitoring, evaluation and learning.
Target 9: Contributions of forests to a green economy increased.Forests and trees will play a crucial role in the move to a green economy, providing, for example, a sustainable source of bioenergy and biomaterials, recreation opportunities, and diverse genetic materials for foods and medicines.
Target 10: Increased financial resources from all sources to sustainably manage forests. The current level of resources allocated to SFM is insufficient. Action is needed at all levels to mobilize sufficient financing from all sources to manage the world’s forests sustainably.
Indicators
The document on which this summary is based proposes measurable indicators for each of the ten targets. Considerable data are available, but there are also data gaps, particularly with respect to biodiversity and social benefits. The indicators presented in the main document will need to be further developed, therefore, when more information on the format of the SDGs is available. Ultimately, the targets will need to be adapted to national and local conditions.
Table of Contents
1Introduction
1.1Background
1.2Approach
2Possible targets and indicators for forests in Sustainable Development Goals
2.1Criteria for forest-related targets and issues to be addressed
2.2Framework for forest-related targets and indicators for SDGs
2.3Forest benefits and their indicators
2.4Proposed targets and indicators for forests
3Concluding remarks
References and sources of information
List of figures
Figure 1Framework of forest-related targets and indicators for Sustainable Development Goals 4
Figure 2Sustainability and forests 28
LIST OF ANNEXES
Annex 1List of international instruments with goals and objectives on forests 18
Annex 2Description of the analytical framework, commonalities, gaps and trade-offs,
and targets and indicators used in international instruments 28
Annex 3Links between the objectives of international instruments and forests 33
LIST OF ACRONYMS
C&ICriteria and Indicators
CBDConvention on Biological Diversity
CITESConvention on International Trade in Endangered Species
COPConference of Parties
CPFCollaborative Partnership on Forests
FAOFood and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
FLEGForest Law Enforcement and Governance
FLEGTForest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (European Union)
GEIGreen Economy Initiative (UNEP)
GGGlobal Goals (FAO)
GHGGreenhouse gas
GPFLRGlobal Partnership on Forest Landscape Restoration
IPCCIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
ITTAInternational Tropical Timber Agreement
ITTOInternational Tropical Timber Organization
LBALegally Binding Agreement on Forests in Europe (draft)
LULUCFLand Use, Land Use Change and Forestry
MDGMillennium Development Goal
MRVMonitoring, Reporting and Verification
NLBINon Legally Binding Instrument on All Types of Forests
NWFPNon-wood forest products
OWGOpen Working Group of the General Assembly
REDDReducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries
Rio+20United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio de Janeiro, 2012
SCPSustainable Consumption and Production
SDGSustainable Development Goal
SFMSustainable forest management
SLMSustainable land management
SNRMSustainable natural resources management
SOStrategic Objectives (FAO)
UNCCDUN Convention to Combat Desertification
UNEPUnited Nations Environment Programme
UNFCCCUN Framework Convention on Climate Change
UNFFUnited Nations Forum on Forests
ZNLDZero Net Land Degradation
10 YFP 10-Year Framework of Programme on Sustainable Consumption and Production
1
DRAFT
1Introduction
1.1Background
One of the main outcomes of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) held in Rio de Janeiro in June 2012, was the agreement by member States to launch a process to develop a set of sustainable development goals (SDGs). The goalswere foreseen toaddress and incorporate in a balanced way all the three dimensions of sustainable development and their interlinkages;be coherent with and integrated into the UN development agenda beyond 2015;and serve as drivers for implementation and mainstreaming of sustainable development in the United Nations system as a whole.
AnOpen Working Group (OWG) of the General Assembly has been tasked with preparing a proposal on the SDGs, which should be concise, action-oriented, limited in number, aspirational and easy to communicate. The SDGs should be global in nature and universally applicable to all countries. The goalsshould be based on Agenda 21 and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, fully respect the Rio Principles, and take into account different national circumstances, capacities and priorities. The SDGs are to be consistent with international law, build upon commitments already made, and contribute to the full implementation of the outcomes of all major summits in the economic, social and environmental fields. Theyshould address and be focused on priority areas for the achievement of sustainable development. Governments should drive SDG implementation with the active involvement of all relevant stakeholders, as appropriate.The process towards achievement of the goals needs to be assessed and accompanied by targets and indicators, and must also take into account different national circumstances, capacities and levels of development.The OWG will submit a report to the sixty-eighth session of the General Assembly, containing a proposal for sustainable development goalsfor consideration and appropriate action.
Forests are vital to achieving global sustainable development. This is highlighted in the Issues Brief on Forests, which was submitted to the OWG by the Technical Support Team coordinated by the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF) with strong inputs from several members of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF)[2]. The document calls for a set of targets and indicators to facilitate the incorporation of forest-related issues in the SDGs. These should guide and promote concrete actions at global, regional and national levels that would guarantee the social, economic and environmental benefits of trees, forests and forest ecosystems to humankind, in a sustainable manner.
CPF at its meeting in November 2013 in Warsaw agreed to form a working group led by FAO to develop a proposal for targets and indicators on forests. Such targets would be focused on global issues, limited in number, easy to understand by all relevant stakeholders, suitable for incorporation in national and regional development plans, and draw on existing data to the extent possible. The targets should be assessed against time-bound and geographically-related indicators based on quantitative and qualitative data.
The objective of this paper is to propose targets on forests that are focused on the positive contributions that forests make to sustainable development, including human development. They consider aspects such as forests’ contribution to agreen economy, food security and poverty reduction, economic development, sustainable consumption and production patterns, and a healthy environment. The targets have been largely derived from the goals and objectives of the existing international instruments.
1.2Approach
The proposed targets and indicators are the outcome of an analysis that consisted of the following steps:
- The international policy instruments thatcontain forest-related targets and indicators were identified and their relevance for SDG-related targets and indicatorsfor forests was assessed.
- Existing indicators for assessing the socioeconomic and environmental benefits of forestswere reviewed.
- Commonalities, differences and links between the objectives and targets of the international instrumentswere identified.
- Potential gaps/trade-offs in the existing objectives and targetswere identified.
Based on the analysis of the collected information, a limited number of targetshave beenproposed, covering all aspects of the multifunctionality of forests and the three dimensions of sustainable development.For each of the targets, in turn, a limited number of measurable indicatorshave beenproposed, which can be qualitative or quantitative.
It is important to point out that the proposed targets and indicators can be used independently of the way in which forestsare integrated into the future SDG framework, i.e. whether there is a stand-alone SDG on forests or whether forests are included in a natural resource-related SDG or in other SDGs. This will ultimately be a decision by the Member States. The purpose of this analysis and proposal is to demonstrate the multifunctionality of forests, their multiple contributions to sustainable development and how these can be reflected through selected targets and indicators.
The following instruments relevant to forests were included in the analysis on how forests are identified in their goals, targets and indicators:
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
Forest sector instruments
- the Global Objectives on Forests, the Non-Legally Binding Instrument on All Types of Forests (Forest Instrument) and the seven thematic elements of SFM agreed by UNFF
- the International Tropical Timber Agreement (ITTA) and the Criteria & Indicators (C&I) of SFM and Strategic Priorities of the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO)
- the draft Legally Binding Agreement on Forests in Europe (LBA) (working title) and the C&I of Forest Europe
- the Montreal Process and its C&I
Rio Conventions
- Agenda 21 including its Forest Principles
- the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, including five Goals and 20 Aichi Targets
- the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol, and decisions on REDD-plus (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation and the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in reducing emissions-REDD+)[3]
- the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Rio+20 embraced concept on land degradation neutrality
Food, agriculture and land
- the UN Zero Hunger Challenge
- FAO’s Global Goals (GG) and Strategic Objectives (SO)
- FAO’s Zero Illegal Deforestation Challenge
- the Global Partnership on Forest Landscape Restoration (GPFLR) and its Bonn Challenge of Restoration
Trade and economic development
- the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
- Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) of the European Union and the Forest Law Enforcement and Governance (FLEG) initiative
- UNEP Green Economy Initiative (GEI)
- 10-Year Framework of Programmes (10 YFP) on Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) adopted at Rio+20 Conference
The goals, objectives and targets/elements of the instruments are listed in Annex 1. Some of the instruments have been agreed upon through an intergovernmental negotiation process, while others have been adopted by the governing bodies of international or regional institutions, or stakeholders of an international partnership. The list is not comprehensive (particularly in the latter group which is represented only by GPFLR) but may still be considered sufficient for the purposes of this analysis.
Annex 2 provides a more detailed description of the framework used for the analysis;commonalities, gaps and trade-offs; and targets and indicators used in the selected international instruments. Annex 3 illustrates the interlinkages between the objectives of these instrumentsby thematic area.
2Possible targets and indicators for forests in Sustainable Development Goals
2.1Criteria for forest-related targets and issues to be addressed
The following criteria have been identified for SDGs and need to be considered for integration into any forest-related targets:
Adherence to global commitments:
- based on Agenda 21, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, Rio+20 Outcome Documentand respect all of the Rio Principles,
- consistent with international law
- build upon commitments already made and contribute to the full implementation of the outcomes of all major summits in the economic, social and environmental fields
National conditions and applicability